Freezing weather to last until March

Britain to be stuck under cold front 'for the next three months'

Warning comes as long-term forecasters suggest cold will last until March

Britain will have to wrap up warm from next week as Arctic winds are expected to bring a cold front for the next month at least.

Forecasters have warned temperatures in December and set to be lower than average for this time of year as the country is hit by northerly winds.

While the temperatures are expected to remain mild throughout the weekend, a cold spell is due to start as we move through next week.

Scenes like this one, from February this year, could be a common sighting over the next few months as forecasters warn this winter could be colder than usual

The warning comes as other long-term forecasters have suggested the temperatures could remain below the winter average until March, according to the Daily Express.

The average temperature for December is 3.9C, but Met Office forecaster Charles Powell said next month was looking as if it is going to be 'colder than usual'.

He did say however that it should remain slightly drier and more sunny than average.

He said: 'It looks as if we could be in for a colder spell as we go towards the end of next week, so Thursday to Friday and into the weekend is looking generally cloudy but a bit colder than we have seen recently.

'From the middle of the month for the rest of December it looks as if temperatures are going to remain near or slightly below average for this time of year, but otherwise pretty normal.

'So in terms of sunshine and rainfall there's nothing particularly signalling that there's going to be anything out of the ordinary.'

Three day forecast: While this weekend is expected to remain mild the cold weather is due to hit as we move through next week

Winter's nearly here: Mist lingers around trees on the Somerset Levels as the early morning sun rises on Tuesday

Mr Powell said some snow could even be seen in parts of Scotland today, a risk which could continue for the next few weeks.

He said: 'All the way through this 30 day period we have got this recurring theme of scattered showers in the north while the south of Britain will remain cold but dry.

'It might be colder than average across parts of the UK but in terms of snowfall, I don't think it's going to be a blanket.'

Mild conditions: A woman runs down Glastonbury Tor as the early morning sun rises on Tuesday

Laura Caldwell, forecaster for the MeteoGroup, said the cold air from the Arctic would be with us by next weekend.

She said: 'So even though it's relatively mild at the minute, it's starting to turn with winds coming from a more northerly direction through the week, especially by next weekend, that's when we will see the really cold air drawn down from the Arctic.

'There are chances of snow showers with that cold air - it's mainly northern exposed parts, such as northern Scotland, but also down the eastern and western coasts of Britain exposed to the northern wind.'